Automatic self-cleaning shower head



Dec. 19, 1961 E. s. MCLEAN AUTOMATIC SELF-CLEANING SHOWER HEAD 3 Sheets-Shea?l 1 Filed Dec. 9, 1960 ill .u

Dec. 19, 1961 E. s. MCLEAN 3,013,729

AUTOMATIC SELF-CLEANING sHowER HEAD Filed Deo. 9, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 MWA; /M/ @Af/A Dec. 19, 1961 E, s. MCLEAN 3,013,729

AUTOMATIC SELF-CLEANING SHOWER HEAD Filed Dec. 9, 1960 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 INV ENTOR Magri M e311 BY ML/@MQ ATTORNEY United States -Patent 3,013,729 AUTOMATIC SELF-CLEANING SHOWER HEAD Edward S. McLean, Wilmington, Del. Filed Dec. 9, 1960, Ser. No. 75,037 7 Claims. (Cl. 239--109) This invention relates in general to shower heads for use in shower baths and the like.

The principal object of this invention is to provide an improved shower head of the type disclosed in Patent No. 2,534,549, issued December 19, 1950, which has been in wide commercial production. More specifically, the object of the present invention is to provide a shower head of the above-mentioned type which possesses the desirable operating characteristics of the shower head disclosed in, and made under the above-mentioned patent, but which is of the self-cleaning type.

Heretofore self-cleaning shower heads have been made principally of the movable serrated disk type, said disk being mounted on a movable piston, which piston is operated by the water pressure to force said disk against the biasing means so as to bring the disk in contact with the edge of the face plate to produce the desired spray. This has the inherent disadvantage of having a spray produced at the periphery of the disk only, which does not allow a uniform spray throughout the area of the spray cone, which can only be obtained by the use of the plunger type spray head, as disclosed in the above-mentioned patent. Those devices using a plurality of movable plungers are so constructed that they have the plungers mounted on a piston and the piston moving under the water pressure to force the plungers downwardly into the face plate. This does not allow the draining of the shower head portion above the piston, commonly referred to as the pressure chamber.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an adjustable self-cleaning shower head.

It is a further object of this invention to provide an adjustable self-cleaning shower head of the adjustable plunger type, wherein the plungers are manually adjustable and do not move with changes in water pressure.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a self-cleaning shower head having a movable face plate which is operated by the water pressure on initiation of the water flow.

The various features of novelty which characterize this invention are pointed out with particularity in the claims annexed to and forming part of this specification. For a better understanding of the invention, however, its advantages and specific objects attained with its use, reference should be had to the accompanying drawings and descriptive matter in which have been illustrated and described a preferred embodiment of the invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE l is a top plan view of the shower head of the present invention.

FIGURE 2 is a bottom plan view thereof.

FIGURE 3 is a vertical sectional view on line 3 3 of FIGURE 1.

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal 'view on line 4-4 of FIGURE 3.

FIGURE 5 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view partly in section on line 5-5 of FIG. 3.

FIGURE 6 is a side view, partially in section of a modilication of the shower head of the .present invention.

FIGURE 7 is an enlarged fragmentary view of FIG- URE 6. f

FIGURE 8 is a side view, partially in section of another modification of the shower head of the present invention.

FIGURE 9 is an enlarged fragmentary view of an alternate method of mounting the sealing ring.

FIGURE 10 is an enlarged fragmentary view 0f a modification of FIGURE 8.

FIGURE 1l is an enlarged fragmentary view of a modification of the seal shown in FIGURE 3.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged fragmentary View of a modification of the seal shown in FIG. 8.

The improved self-cleaning shower head shown in the drawings comprises a hollow body portion 10 provided at its upper end with connecting means 11 of the conventional form for attaching the shower head to a water supply pipe (not shown). The lower end of the body portion is provided with a machined opening 12 which receives a face plate 13 therein, said face plate being provided with a groove 14 in the edge thereof, which receives an O-ring packing 15 to maintain it in water tight engagement with the machined opening 12. This face plate is also provided with a series of circular orifices 16, 16, shown in FIG. 2, spaced about its aXis and having their axes parallel to said axis. This face plate has a central hub axially located.

At the upper end of said body is a wall 18 having a depending hollow tubular portion axially located within the body portion. The upper part of this tubular portion is provided with water ports 19 communicating with the pressure chamber 20. Said tubular portion has a rib 21 intermediate its extremities below the ports 19, the lower part of this tubular portion receiving the hub 17 in sliding engagement therein. A bolt 22 having a spring 23 is inserted from the top of a hollow tubular portion and is screwed into the upper part of the central hub portion 17. The spring is retained above the rib 21 and acts as a biasing means and retains the face plate 13 in the upper position, shown in FIG. 3.

A shaft 24' is mounted in the side of the shower head body portion 10. This shaft has a plate 25 on the inner end thereof. The shaft is held in position by means of the bearing nut 27 having the packing material 28 between said nut and said plate 25 so as to hold the same in water tight engagement with the body 10. The outer end ot the shaft 24 has mounted thereon a handle 29 held in position by the machined screw 30. The off-'center pin 26 is received in a slot 31 in the side of a tubular sleeve 32, which sleeve is mounted on the exterior surface of 'the depending portion of the wall 18 and is free to be adjustably controlled by means of the handle 29. Attached to the lower end of the sleeve 32 is a spider 33 parallel to and spaced from the face plate 13. spider has the -tiow obstructers 34 mounted therein, these flow obstructers each coaxial with and normally extending through a corresponding one of said orifices I16 and having a lower end portion of a diameter only slightly smaller than the orifice diameter and having a reduced neck portion adjacent its opposite end to be received in and held by said spider 33.

These liow obstructers may be mounted on the spider by riveting or by cotter pins, or as shown in FIG. 5, wherein said flow obstructers have a reduced neck portion adjacent their opposite ends which are received in and held by a slot in said spider, eacn flow obstructer being movable radially into and out 0f the corresponding slot through the open outer end of the latter.

Each flow obstructer 34 has an intermediate tapered portion 35 diminishing in cross section from its cylindrical lower end portion towards said neck portion and having grooves 36 in the side thereof, as shown in FIGURE 4.

A modification of this invention is shown in FIGURES 6 and 7 wherein the hollow body portion 41 contains a spider 42 controlled by the manually operated handle 43 and having attached thereto a flow obstructer 44, just as in the previous modification. The face plate 45 has flexi- This ble washer 46 retained within a recess 47 cut in the edge of the face plate 45. An upper shoulder 48 is machined into the body portion 41. A second shoulder 49 is machined into the body portion 41 and is so spaced from the shoulder 48 as to be brought into bearing engagement with the upper portion of the washer 46. A third, and lower shoulder 50 is machined into the body portion 41 so as to be brought into engagement with the lower portion of the washer 46, when the face plate 45 is in the lower position, which is limited by a mechanism similar to that shown in FIGURE 3.

When the connecting means 11 is connected to a source of water, the water flows in the chamber 37 in the ball joint of the shower head and passes into the chamber 38. This ball joint is held in water tight engagement by the usual packing 39 and glands 40. It then passes through the water ports 19 into the pressure chamber 20 and flows through the opening in the face plate 13 until the pressure against the face plate is sufficient to force the same downwardly against the biasing means and takes the lower position, shown in FIG. 3, in dot and dash lines, which restricts the flow around the flow obstructers and produces a spray. The movement of this face plate is limited by means of the bolt 22, being forced downwardly against the spring biasing means 23 and produces a spray as it leaves the shower head. The type of spray may be adjusted by rotating the handle 29 which moves the shaft 24 and adjusts the off-center pin 26, which is carried in the slot 31, and moves the tubular sleeve 32, which carries the spider 33 and thereby adjusts the position of the flow obstructers with reference to the body of the shower head.

When the desired spray has been obtained the handle will hold the flow obstructers in their adjusted position to suit the convenience of the user, and will remain in this position until the handle has been readjusted.

When the water has been cut off the face plate 13 will rise, due to the spring biasing means 23 until it assumes the position shown in solid lines in FIG. 3. This will allow the water to flow freely around the reduced tapered portion 35 of the ow obstructers and will clean the shower head. All of the water will flow out of the pressure chamber 20 of the shower head and will thoroughly clean the Same.

The second modification operates quite similarly to the modification shown in FIGS. l to 5, the biasing means forcing the face plate upwardly toward the shoulder 48 and the shoulder 49 contacting the upper portion of the washer 46 when there is no water pressure against the face plate 45. 41 the pressure will force the face plate 45 downwardly against the biasing means, not shown, in FIGURES 6 and 7, but operating in the same manner as shown in FIGS. l to 5. As the face plate moves downwardly the washer 46 does not contact the side wall below the shoulder 49 and comes to rest in its lower position which 1s controlled by the spring biasing means. In this position the washer does contact the shoulder 50 and forms a water tight seal therewith.

The modification shown in FIGS. 8 to 12 inclusive, operates in the same manner as described above. The face plate 51 is held in its upper position, as shown by the spring biasing means, not shown. The flow obstructers 52, 52 are positioned on a spider 53 and mounted in the slot thereon, as described above. A machined ring 54 is threaded into the body portion 55 and has an O-ring 56 received in a groove 57 on the upper surface thereof. The face plate 51 is forced downwardly by the flow of water and contacts the O-ring 56 and forms a seal with the body portion 55.

In the modification shown in FIG. 9 the O-ring 58 is mounted in the groove 59 in the bottom surface of the face plate 60. This groove 59 receives and holds the O- ring 58 as shown` in FIG. '9. The face plate is held in Upon the admission of water to the body the upper position, as shown in FIG. 9, by biasing means, not shown, and upon the admission of water is forced downwardly against the said biasing means until the O- ring 58 contacts the split ring 61 mounted in the bottom inside edge of the body portion 62. This Oring then forms a seal between the split ring 61 and the face plate 60.

Another method of mounting the 0-ring is shown in FIG. 10. This method is quite similar to that shown in FIG. 8 except that the O-ring 62 is mounted in the machine ring 63 so that when the machine ring 63 is threaded into the body portion 64, the O-ring 62 contacts the body portion 64 on the interior surface thereof. The face plate 65 is movably mounted as described above and upon the admission of water to the body portion 64 the face plate forms a seal with the O-ring 62.

The modification shown in FIG. ll has the O-ring 66 mounted in the edge of the face plate 67 which does not contact the interior surface of the body portion 68. The O-ring 66 protrudes beyond the outside edge of the face plate 67 and contacts the upper shoulder 69 of the recess 70 cut into the body portion 68. When the face plate 67 is forced downwardly by the admission of water to the body portion 68 the O-ring 66 contacts the lower shoulder 71 of the recess 70 and thereby forms a seal in both the upper and lower position.

The modification shown in FIG. l2 has a face plate 72 held in its upper position, as shown by the spring biasing means, not shown. The ring 73 is made of a plastic material such as nylon, Debrin, etc., with semi-circular bead 74 as an integral part thereof and is held in place in the body portion 75 by a recess 76 together with a threaded collar or nut 77. When Water is admitted to the body portion 75 the face plate 72 is forced downwardly until it contacts the bead 74 of ring 73 and the bead forms a water-tight seal against this ring.

The advantages of this self-cleaning shower head are principally in the removal of all of the water therefrom and all of the foreign material that is carried into the body portion of the shower head, such as sediment, corrosion products, etc. There is no piston to retain any of these materials within the head, as is found in some selfcleaning shower heads now on the market. The face plate when it moves downwardly over the fiow obstructers cleans their surface of any sedimentary deposit that may have accumulated thereon.

When the handle 29 is allowed to remain in one setting for a substantial length of time and that setting partially depresses the face plate 13 there is a tendency for a deposit to build up back of the face plate because the face plate will only move each time the shower is turned on an amount between this partially depressed position and the full stroke of the removable face plate. This deposit may be removed by simply rotating the handle through one complete cycle when the water is turned off, which will allow the spring to force the face plate upwardly and free the raised portion of the outer head body from any deposits that accumulate thereon. The handle may then be reset and the movable face plate will remove any such deposit automatically that accumulates between the openings 16 and the plungers 34.

The washer shown in the modification illustrated in FIGURES 6 and 7 has the advantage of operating under very low water pressure as there is no drag between the washer 46 and the side wall of the body portion 41 during the downward stroke of the movable face plate 45. This eliminates the friction of the O-ring shown in FIG- URE 2, and yet maintains a seal against the shoulder 49 in the upper position, and the shoulder 50 in the lower position and prevents water from being discharged around the face plate in either the upper or lower position.

While in accordance with the provisions of the statutes there has been illustrated and described the best form of embodiment of this invention, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that changes may be made in the form of the apparatus disclosed without departing from the spirit of this invention as set forth in the appended claims and that in some cases certain features of this invention may be used to advantage without a corresponding use of other features.

This application is a continuation-in-part of application Serial No. 799,186, led March 13, 1959, now abandoned. and application Serial No. 38,075, led June 22, 1960.

What is claimed is:

1. A self-cleaning shower head comprising a hollow body with a water inlet at one end and a water outlet at the other end, a shower face plate means normally extending across said outlet opening and formed with a plurality of circular orifices spaced about its axis and having their axes parallel to said axis, a spider element mounted in said body for movement toward and away from said face plate member, comprising a spider coaxial with said face plate member, a plurality of flow obstructors, each coaxial with and normally extending through a corresponding one of said orifices and having a lower end portion of a diameter only slightly smaller than the orice diameter, and having a reduced neck portion adjacent its opposite end to be received in and held by said spider, each flow obstructer having an intermediate tapered portion diminishing in cross section from its cylindrical lower end portion towards the said neck portion and mechanism for adjusting said spider relative tof said face plate member between an upper position in which the cylindrical end portion of the fio-w obstructers are received in and substantially close said orifice, and a lower position in which said intermediate portion of each iiow obstructer is within the corresponding orifice and the discharge area through each orifice, depending on the distance between said face plate means and said spider, said shower face pl-ate means being movable by water pressure between an upper and lowei position and being held by biasing means in its upper position.

2. A self-cleaning shower head as claimed in claim 1, said face plate member having a seal mounted thereon to maintain said face plate in water-tight engagement with said hollow body member.

3. A self-cleaning shower head as claimed in claim l, said hollow body member having a sealing element to contact said face plate member in the upper and lower position to seal the same.

4. A self-cleaning shower head as claimed in claim l, having a ring portion attached to the bottom of said body portion and extending inwardly, said ring portion having a yieldable sealing means mounted in the upper surface thereof.

5. A self-cleaning shower head, as claimed in claim 1, having a ring portion attached to the bottom of said body portion and extending inwardly, said face plate member having a yieldable sealing member on that portion of the under surface thereof which contacts said ring portion when said face plate is in the lower position.

6. A self-cleaning shower head comprising a hollow body with a water inlet at one end and a water outlet at the other end, a shower face plate means normally extending across said outlet opening and formed with a plurality of circular orifices spaced about its axis and having their axes parallel to said axis, a spider element mounted in said body for movement toward and away from said face plate member comprising a spider coaxial with said face plate member, a plurality of flow obstructers each coaxial with and normally extending through a corresponding one of said orifices and having a lower end portion of a diameter only slightly smaller than the orifice diameter, and having a reduced neck portion adjacent its opposite end to be received in and held by said spider, each iiow obstructer having an intermediate tapered portion diminishing in cross section from its cylindrical lower end portion towards the said neck portion and mechanism for adjusting said spider relative to said face plate member between an upper position in which the cylindrical end portion of the flow obstructers are received in and substantially close said orifice, and a lower position in which said intermediate portion of each iiow obstructer is within the corresponding orifice and the discharge area through each orifice, depending on the distance between said plate means and said spider, said adjusting mechanism comprising a rotatable shaft mounted in the side of the hollow body with the cam and a pin on the inner end thereof, said pin being received in a yoke which carries said spider, said shower face plate means being movable by water pressure between an upper and lower position and being held by biasing means in its upper position.

7. A self-cleaning shower head comprising a hollow body with a water inlet at one end and a water outlet at the other end, a shower face plate means normally extending across said outlet opening and formed with a plurality of circular orifices spaced about its axis and having their axes parallel to said axis, a spider element mounted in said body for movement toward and away from said face plate member comprising a spider coaxial with said member and formed with radially extending slots spaced about the axis of the spider element, each of said slots extending across the central portion of a corresponding one of said circular orifices and being open at its outer end, a plurality of ow obstructers each coaxial with and normally extending through a corresponding one of said orifices and having a lower end portion of a diameter only slightly smaller than the orice-diameter, and having a reduced neck portion adjacent its opposite end to be received in and held by said slot, each ow obstructer being movable radially into and out of the corresponding slot through the open outer end of the latter, each flow obstructer having an intermediate tapered portion diminishing in cross section from its cylindrical lower end portion towards the said neck portion and mechanism for adjusting said spider relative to said face plate mem-V ber between an upper position in which the cylindrical end portion of the ow obstructers are received in and substantially close said orifice and a lower position in which said intermediate portion of each flow obstructer is within the corresponding orifice and the discharge area through each orifice, depending on the distance between said face plate means and said spider, said shower face plate means being movable by water p-ressure between an upper and lower position and being held by biasing means in its upper position.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,534,549 Fraser Dec. 19, 1950 y 2,689,151 Manning Sept. 14, 1954 2,790,677 Filliung et al. Apr. 30, 1957 

